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Yeah, bieniek, Shige pricing has really gone though the roof in the past few years. Supply and demand and a bit of hype all play into this. I would say that a few years ago Shiges where under priced: you where getting single-custom maker quality at high-end factory pricing. This meant that when one came available, it was a no-brained to buy it. Now however, prices have put shiges into a whole different ballpark in terms of their competition. For +/- a few bucks you could have a full custom from any number of world-class, top-quality American or Japanese makers like Michael Rader, Devin Thomas, Bill Burke.

I purchased a 270mm Kasumi wa-guyto a couple years ago, and this 210 western is almost 2X the price I paid. I understand that westen integral bolsters will always add a big price-jump but this is a bit too rich for my blood.

Yeah, bieniek, Shige pricing has really gone though the roof in the past few years. Supply and demand and a bit of hype all play into this. I would say that a few years ago Shiges where under priced: you where getting single-custom maker quality at high-end factory pricing. This meant that when one came available, it was a no-brained to buy it. Now however, prices have put shiges into a whole different ballpark in terms of their competition. For +/- a few bucks you could have a full custom from any number of world-class, top-quality American or Japanese makers like Michael Rader, Devin Thomas, Bill Burke.

I purchased a 270mm Kasumi wa-guyto a couple years ago, and this 210 western is almost 2X the price I paid. I understand that westen integral bolsters will always add a big price-jump but this is a bit too rich for my blood.

Justin, you make some good points, but is it fair to compare the price of a wa kasumi two years ago to a kitaeji integral western today?